Screening for rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease using low-dose CT: an emerging approach — an observational prospective case-control study
Authors' conclusion
LD PCD-CT demonstrated superior sensitivity and specificity for early RA-ILD detection compared to clinical assessment and PFTs, while maintaining low radiation exposure.
Study context
- Population
- Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients without known ILD, Hungarian RA cohort, Feb 2022-June 2023consecutively enrolled
- Participants
- 492 patients
- Comparison
- LD PCD-CT vs clinical assessment and pulmonary function testing (PFTs) for RA-ILD screening
- Outcome
- Diagnostic performance of LD PCD-CT for RA-ILD
Methodological detailsobservational, consecutively enrolled
- Observational
- Consecutively enrolled
Main finding
As reported in the abstract
Interstitial abnormalities detected
| Outcome | LD PCD-CT | PFTs | Clinical assessment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prevalence of interstitial abnormalities | 35% | — not stated in the abstract | — not stated in the abstract |
| Abnormalities detected among CT-defined cases | — not stated in the abstract | 22% | 44% |
| Positive among patients without CT-defined abnormalities | — not stated in the abstract | — not stated in the abstract | 42% |
| Abnormal among patients without CT-defined abnormalities | — not stated in the abstract | 23% | — not stated in the abstract |
— not stated in the abstract
Observational data: associations, not effects.
Further findings
Most frequent CT findings
- Interstitial reticular abnormalities
- 58%
- Usual interstitial pneumonia
- 22%
Independent ILD predictors (logistic regression)
- Age ≥ 50 years, male sex, ≥ 25 pack-year smoking history, rheumatoid factor (RF) positivity, elevated lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) levels
Safety
- Radiation dose of LD PCD-CT
- 0.415 · mean · mSv
Original publication
Screening for rheumatoid arthritis-associated interstitial lung disease using low-dose CT: an emerging approach — an observational prospective case-control study. Arthritis Res Ther. Published 6 November 2025. doi:10.
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